Hardware Help

[tengu]

Up until now all of my mixes have been done ITB.

I am looking to add hardware to the equation and mix stems into hardware eq's and comps to add a little "vibe", colour and depth to my recordings.

Choosing comps isn't too difficult as many come in stereo or are linkable, however that isn't the case with eq's. I don't wanna be spending money on 3 sets of mastering quality stereo eq's.

My idea is to eventually have 3 chains of stereo eq's and currently I only own 2 Specks, with transformer, in the eq department.

Will I run into phase issues using mono eq's in stereo?

Are the eq's in the chamleon labs 7602 good enough to add some vibe to a stereo buss and/or will they create phase issues?

A 500 rack is another idea, as is the new API stereo eq but money is an issue and I wanna keep costs down (don't we all).

Any advice is welcome particulary from those using hardware to at the end of stereo busses. Don't wanna give a ballpark figure for my budget as I don't want that to be the priority with responses, however you can get an idea from the pieces I have named.

Cheers.

[Polyphony]

hey,
I'm alittle confused on your post.
If you run signal through channel strips and back into your comp. You are still mixing ITB. When people refer to mixing out of the box. It means they use an analog summing section.
Perhaps, I just misunderstood your post.

[psycho_monkey]

Originally Posted by Polyphony

hey,
I'm alittle confused on your post.
If you run signal through channel strips and back into your comp. You are still mixing ITB. When people refer to mixing out of the box. It means they use an analog summing section.
Perhaps, I just misunderstood your post.

Well yes and no...you're still SUMMING in the box, but if you're using external analogue processing, then I'd say it's more of a hybrid approach.

And personally, I think mixing out of the box generally needs an external mixer/analogue processing, and generally using the computer as a glorified tape machine (with some processing options). My opinion is that using an analogue summing section is also a hybrid approach, since most of the time you'll be doing automation/processing still IN the box.

Referring to the original poster, In my experience, most stereo hardware EQs are effectively 2 mono EQs - for example GML, Prism Maslec, Millenia, Massive Passive etc - there's no linking of controls - so the answer to your question is no, using two mono EQs should be fine regarding phase.

[tengu]

Awesome, thanks for the replies.

yeah, a 500 rack looks to be a really good option for what I want to do.

I am not gonna use a summing box at this stage, so I guess it is the "hybrid" approach.

Can anyone give any opinions on the Chameleon labs eq. I cannot get them to loan and would appreciate any comparisons with other eq's.

[Polyphony]

[QUOTE=psycho_monkey;1076646]Well yes and no...you're still SUMMING in the box, but if you're using external analogue processing, then I'd say it's more of a hybrid approach.

And personally, I think mixing out of the box generally needs an external mixer/analogue processing, and generally using the computer as a glorified tape machine (with some processing options). My opinion is that using an analogue summing section is also a hybrid approach, since most of the time you'll be doing automation/processing still IN the box.
QUOTE]

yes but the argument does not have anything to do with automation when talking about mixing itb vs otb.
Where the argument lies is between a clock(digital) and a summing section(analog). I have tried the 'hybrid' approach and yes the outboard gear does add flavor but when it comes to 'time' it's still not definitive. Clocks are not definitive yet. Meaning, they are still guessing where all the tracks land in time. Therefore, it's impossible to attain the analog sound digitally. For digital to accomplish the same sound you would need a processor per track and a definitive clock. Which neither exists yet. operative word YET. I believe the radar unit has a processor per track but the clock issue still stands.

As for the poster, GML EQ I use all the time across the 2mix also if you don't want the limited EQ try the API 5502....

Good luck,
B.

[tengu]

Thought I would chip in for anyone interested

just got myself a pair of these eq's for a good price.

they have the transformers

I trialled them for a few weeks using them without the transformer outputs

tried them with a variety of sounds but mainly using them as a sounds buss for my computer tracked beats

sounded pretty good, at least interesting

highend was very slightly harsh but it held together not too bad, as harsh as that may sound I ended up really liking the high end

the mids were good, the lows were good as well

they were both accurate and broad enough to enjoy using them. The more I played with them the more my ears were interested/liked the specks

it was when I tried them on the master buss from my MPC that they sounded great. I was sold

These are decent eq's. My guess is they will be very good for drums.

Polyphony, the 5500 looks interesting to me. Are you familiar with the 500 series of these eq's?